


Just in Time

by DeckofDragons



Category: Team Fortress 2
Genre: Angst and Fluff, Blood, Gen, Gunshot Wounds, Injury Recovery, Possible Character Death, Scout has daddy issues, SpyDad, Violence, father/son bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-10
Updated: 2018-10-14
Packaged: 2019-07-29 01:30:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16253879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeckofDragons/pseuds/DeckofDragons
Summary: Scout's out scouting and finds himself in more trouble than he can deal with.





	1. Trouble

**Author's Note:**

> I recently got super into TF2 and thus was scrolling through the tumblr tags and came across two pieces of fanart that filled me with the extreme need to a write a story based off them and so I did. This is that fic and here are the images that inspired me to write it: https://solsdrawins.tumblr.com/post/161079601230/sketch-practice and https://solsdrawins.tumblr.com/post/161278525370/cmon-dad-hold-on-just-a-bit-longer-a-sort-of  
> (I wish I could provide proper links but it's 5am, I'm too tired to google how do that.) It was originally supposed to be pretty short but then this happened instead.

Scout zipped around the corner as more gunfire rang out behind him. Warmth trickled down his shoulder where a bullet had grazed him, undoubtedly more had gotten him too he just didn’t feel the pain or blood yet. And he never would if he didn’t manage to get away from his assailants. He’d been ambushed by a small group of enemy mercenaries, he’d managed to take out a few of them out but all by himself there was only so much he could do, he’d had to run. They’d dogged him, taking advantage of the initial hits they’d gotten in that slowed him. He couldn’t run for much longer, he needed to end this now.

He raised his pistol – he’d burnt through all the ammo in his shotgun a while ago, – ready to shoot as soon as the enemy rounded the corner. Which they did, _seconds_ after he did. Aiming purely by instinct he pulled the trigger and… _click_. He was out of ammo and he’d back himself up into a dead end.

He dropped the gun and whipped out his bat with his other hand. The enemy’s gun went off and an _intense_ pain shot through his arm, sending the bat to the floor too as he barely managed to hold back a scream of pain.

The rest of the enemy finished rounding the corner cutting off any hope of running past. This was it, there was no way out, he was going to die here, alone and for no reason. Their smirks of victory as they raised their guns sealed the deal.

Something solid pushed him back, knocking him to his rear, a split second before the sound of gunfire erupted. There was no pain, nothing hit him. He looked up to see… Spy standing in front of him, shielding him. Scout flinched instinctively clutching onto him as more gunfire sounded.

It seemed to go on for forever but it was only a few seconds before silence returned. Or near silence, even with earplugs specifically designed to protect one’s ears from the sound of gun shots, Scout’s ears were still ringing. But when he looked up he saw all his attackers were dead, shot cleanly through the head.

Shaking, he straightened. “Gosh, Spy that was awesome, ya saved…” He cut off as Spy stumbled and collapsed backwards. Scout caught him, flinching as fresh pain shot through his arm. He lost his footing and was sent back onto his rear, Spy half in his lap, leaning back into him.

Scout opened his mouth to ask if he was okay but then he looked down and saw Spy’s chest. There were _multiple_ bullet wounds marring his once pristine suit. “Dad!”

 “You know?” Spy said, lifting a hand to Scout’s arm. His voice was weak, barely perceptible even up close like this.

“I uh… yes.” He hadn’t known but had strongly suspected, it had just slipped out of him by accident. But _now_ he knew. “We got more important things to worry about right now though.”

Spy mumbled something in French, cutting off as he went limp. He was still breathing though, Scout could feel it against his chest due to how heavily Spy sagged back into him. So, wasn’t dead yet, there was still time to save him.

“O-okay, okay, gotta call the doc, he’ll patch ya up no probs, does it all the time.” With a shaking hand, Scout reached up to fumble with his headset. He’d used it earlier to try to call for help but the signal wasn’t good so far away from the base and he hadn’t been able to get through. Hopefully he’d have better luck this time.

“Mayday, mayday,” he said loud and clear as he could manage when his dad was _dying_ in his arms at this very moment.

Static answered and… “Kid, that you?” It was indistinct and staticky but still unmistakable as Engi’s voice; Scout had gotten through.

“Yes, help, please help, I…”

“What’s your location?”

Scout told him, being precise as he could. “Bring Medic _please_ , Spy’s been shot… a lot.” To save him no less.

“On it, we’ll be there in a jiffy.” The line went dead, leaving Scout nothing to do but _pray_ they made it in time. Spy was still breathing but it was weaker than before and was ragged.

“C’mon Dad, hold on just a bit longer.” Scout rocked back and forth slightly, holding Spy close as if that could somehow save him. “Doc’s coming so it’ll be fine. He can save like anyone, right? So you’ll be fine.” Scout was rambling but couldn’t make himself stop. “Ya can’t die for reals that’d be… fucked up. ‘Specially with how you saved me and all.”

Every so often Scout stopped speaking and rocking to listen and feel for Spy’s breathing. It continued to grow weaker. He couldn’t die though, not like this. But no matter how hard he willed it, Spy kept inching closer to death with every passing second.

It started raining, starting as a drizzle before growing heavy. It was _freezing_ , making Scout shiver and shake as the ground turned to mud around him. He wasn’t sure if Spy was still breathing, it didn’t seem like he was.

“Over here.”

Scout snapped his head up to see Heavy standing in the mouth of the alley way. Seconds later Medic was there too.

“Doc ya gotta save him,” Scout said with chattering teeth as he continued to clutch Spy’s body. Was it cold because of the rain or… was Medic too late? “Don’t let him die, _please_.”

Medic had already rushed over and crouched down beside them. “Give him to me.” It was harder than it should’ve been for Scout to loosen his grip to let Medic pull Spy away. “Heavy, take care of Scout.”

“Come,” Heavy said as he picked Scout up. Scout let out a small whimper of protest but lacked the strength to resist fully and thus let Heavy carry him a short distance away. Was it to keep him from the truth though or because Medic needed space to work?

Heavy placed him on box and set to taking care of Scout’s injuries, at Medic’s insistence they all knew basic first aid. The bullet wound would need proper attention later but it wasn’t life threatening so it could wait. “Trust Doctor.”

Scout nodded. If _anyone_ could save Spy it was Medic, he did seemingly impossible medical stuff all the time. Scout couldn’t do anything more.

When he was all bandaged up, Scout tried to move closer but Heavy blocked him. “No,” he said.

Scout groaned, still shivering and shaking uncontrollably. “I need to know if he’s… going to make it.”

“No,” Heavy said again. “Give Doctor room to work, don’t need you distracting him.” Was he being honest in his reasons for keeping Scout away or was it hopeless and he didn’t want to tell him that yet? Heavy’s ever stoic expression made it impossible to tell.

“Fine.” Scout settled back down with a sigh. He couldn’t get past Heavy in this state no matter how hard he tried and even in peak condition Heavy was bigger and stronger than him so it would’ve been very difficult anyway. He could do nothing but wait and hope for the best.

“Time to go back to the car,” Medic said a short time later. “Scout’s up front with you Heavy, I’ll be in the back with Spy.”

Wordlessly, Heavy picked Scout up again. Despite the indignity of it, Scout didn’t protest, he was too exhausted and cold. It was a huge relief to be placed in the passenger side seat, it was warm and dry, he couldn’t wait to change out of these wet and bloodstained clothes. How much of that blood was his and how much of it was Spy’s though? It was impossible to know. Just like it was impossible to know if Spy was going to make it or not, especially when Medic and Heavy were keeping Scout as far away from his as possible. That couldn’t mean good things, could it?


	2. Medical Care

Scout groaned as he reluctantly woke up. When had he fallen asleep and why? His eyes fluttered up to see the ceiling of one of the rooms in the hospital part of the base where Medic did his doctor stuff. He was alone and… dressed in a hospital gown.

His arm ached with a dull throb and was bandaged and in a sling – ugh he _hated_ slings and it was his good arm too, how was he going to function like this? The fuzziness brought on by whatever pain meds Medic had given him made the annoyance, like the pain of the wound, dull for now, he’d undoubtedly feel worse later. He had more important things to worry about right now though. Such as Spy’s fate.

He sat up and carefully slid off the bed. His legs wobbled slightly beneath him but he could manage. Unfortunately, there was no clean pair of clothes anywhere, meaning he’d have to make do with the hospital gown for now, he could get dressed properly _after_ he’d discovered Spy’s fate.

He walked to the door and fumbled with the handle for a few seconds before getting it open and stepping through. Medic was just outside, either passing by and pausing to greet him or had been about to come in.

“Oh good, you’re awake,” he said.

“What happened?” Scout asked

“You passed out during the ride back to base.”

Scout scowled at him, too tired to be properly angry about being misunderstood. “Is uh…” Dreading the answer he didn’t want to ask what Spy’s fate was, but he needed to know and putting off finding out would only make the news harder if the worst _had_ happened. “Is Spy okay?”

“No of course not, he was shot six times,” Medic replied and Scout flinched. It couldn’t be, he didn’t want to believe it was… _so_ unfair and messed up. “He’s still alive though, for now.”

“What? You just said…” Well Scout _had_ asked if Spy was okay, not if he was alive, it was pretty obvious he wouldn’t be okay. Medic should’ve known what he’d meant though. “Is he going to _be_ okay?” How long had Scout been asleep for? Felt like a while, surely if Spy was still alive after all that time he’d make it through, right?

“I don’t know yet, I’m on my way to check him now. You can come with me if you like.”

Swallowing, Scout nodded and followed as Medic continued down the hall. Under normal circumstances he wouldn’t want to follow Medic any deeper into his medical clinic for fear of being experimented on but if Medic had done any experimenting on him it would’ve been while he was unconscious so there was nothing Scout could do about it other than do his best to not think about it. Though Medic had to have been busy with Spy, right? So Scout was probably fine. He still needed his clothes though but he needed to see Spy first.

As they walked – slower than Scout would’ve liked but he wasn’t capable of going much faster at the moment – Medic rambled about Spy’s condition. Scout didn’t pay attention, he didn’t understand the vast majority of the medical lingo and Medic’s accent on top of how fuzzy his head still felt only made it harder to follow. But Medic seemed to be in a decent mood, which had to mean good things, right? It meant he was confident Spy would live. Maybe, with Medic it was impossible to say if he was in a good mood for good reasons or if he was in full mad scientist doctor mode.

Spy’s room wasn’t too far away thankfully, not that it could’ve been anyway considering how small the base was. Not surprisingly, it was one of the intensive care rooms. Inside Spy was hooked up to Medic’s special life support system as well as a more standard one and other things that Scout had no idea what were but were hopefully good things. The machines beeped softly with big displays but Scout had no idea how to read them so he didn’t bother to try, instead he stepped closer to examine Spy with his eyes.

He too was in a hospital gown, his chest swathed in bloody bandages, a blanket pulled up to just below where they ended. His mask was still on – or put back on – apparently Medic was down to continue to hide his face. Scout could take a peek if he wanted to but… it’d be wrong to do so while he was near death like this.

“He gonna be okay Doc?” was all Scout could ask. He would’ve been wringing his hands if one weren’t in a damn sling. He’d never seen Spy so badly injured before and knowing _why_ and _how_ he’d ended up like this made him feel almost sick.

“Like I said, I do not know yet.” Weren’t doctors supposed to have better bedside manners than this? He was supposed to be optimistic, right? “But if anyone can save him it’s me.” Cocky asshole, though it was true; Medic was the best doctor Scout had ever known, though he hadn’t met many so that wasn’t saying much. And the few other doctors he’d met had all been sane, the same wasn’t completely true for Medic, so perhaps he was just being delusional. But Spy _was_ still alive for now so maybe he wasn’t.

“Do sit down though, you’re in rough shape too.” Medic gestured to a chair in the corner of the room.

If Scout wasn’t so exhausted and worried he would’ve protested and insisted on staying standing. But it wasn’t worth the effort right now so walked over and sat down with a sigh. “I need my clothes.”

“Later,” Medic said in a dismissive tone as he started undoing the bandages around Spy’s chest, probably to change them and inspect the wounds again.

Scout watched for a bit before looking away, even closing his eyes. The sight of the bullet wounds was _highly_ unpleasant even though blood and gore had rarely bothered him much before. It was just _knowing_ what he now knew about Spy and how Spy had gotten those wounds and that they could easily still end him before Scout even came to terms with the fact that Spy was his dad. So he didn’t watch or even think about what Medic was doing – come to think of it why was he doing this with Scout in the room? Wasn’t there a rule that disallowed that kind of thing? … It was Medic though, he wasn’t known for following rules.

 

“Kid wake up.” A hand shook Scout’s shoulder and his eyes opened to see Engi standing next to him. “Get dressed and come eat something.”

Scout groaned and looked over at Spy. Medic was gone but the life support machines were still active and beeping softly and Spy’s chest rose and fell gently, meaning he was still alive. The longer he held on, the better his chances of pulling through were, right?

Pyro mumbled something unintelligible from behind Engi, nodding in obvious agreement.

Scout didn’t want to move but couldn’t deny the fact that he was starving. When was the last time he’d eaten? “’Kay,” he said as he stood and accepted the change of clothes Engi had brought him. “Thanks.”

Engi nodded before turning and leaving, bringing Pyro with him.

Scout got dressed in the bathroom. It was much more difficult with his arm in a sling and heavily bandaged but it wasn’t the first time he’d had to get dressed one handed. It made _everything_ hurt though, he’d been grazed by more than a few bullets as evidence by the bandages is so many places as well as the pain under them, he’d have to ask Medic for more pain meds after eating.

“’Kay uh… Dad, just… don’t die or whatever while I’m gone, I’ll be back soon, promise,” he whispered to Spy as he stepped back out before leaving.


	3. Life Support

“So, you know then?”

Scout looked up at Sniper as the entered the room. It was the next day and Medic still wasn’t sure if Spy was going to pull through or pass away in his sleep. Scout sat in the chair by his bed as if that could somehow help, he’d had a good night’s rest last night solely due to a sleeping pill Medic had given him. “Know what?”

Sniper’s eyes lowered to Spy and then lifted back up to look at Scout again. “About him.”

“You mean that’s he’s my dad?”

“Yes.”

“Then yeah, I know. I accidentally overheard you guys talking about it a couple months ago and uh… I didn’t want to believe it.” He’d done everything in his power to pretend he hadn’t heard that conversation, even as he’d connected the dots that all pointed to the truth, trying to brush them off as coincidences. “But then he _saved_ me and confirmed it before… passing out. And uh… now’s he’s gonna… he might…” Scout put his hand over his mouth, suddenly fighting the need to tear up. He _couldn’t_ say it, _wouldn’t_ , voicing it would make that possibility feel more real.

Sniper walked over and awkwardly put a hand on Scout’s shoulder. “He’ll be all right.” Even if he was saying it only to be comforting – he didn’t _know_ Spy would be okay – it still eased the tight knot in Scout’s chest, enough that he could breathe a little easier and relax back into his chair again.

They stayed like that for a little while, the silence filled with the soft beeps of the life support machines. It was a calming sound, it meant there was still hope. The longer Spy held on the better his chances of pulling through completely were.

Eventually Sniper gave him a firmer pat on the shoulder. “I gotta go mate, got work to do, but I’ll be back later.”

“’Kay, thanks.” All of their squad mates were in and out every so often to visit Spy. It made Scout feel not so alone in his vigil. He needed to be there if Spy… didn’t recover.

 

It took three whole days of touch and go before Medic declared Spy’s condition stable enough that he was going to live.

“Well of course, he’s gonna live, I wasn’t worried at all,” Scout scoffed to hide a tired sigh of relief at the news.

Medic frowned. “I suppose you were just sitting by his bedside the whole time the past three days for no reason then?”

“Uh… yeah, totally.” It’s not like he had anything better to do while he recovered from his own injuries. And Spy was his dad, Scout was super resilient so, so was Spy, right? So it was obvious he was going to pull through. “But uh… when he’s gonna like wake up and stuff?”

Medic shrugged. “Soon probably. I could give him a shot to wake him up now if you like.” That undoubtedly wouldn’t be healthy or good in anyway.

“Uh… no thanks. I’ll wait.” Scout needed more time to figure out what he’d say when Spy woke up anyway. He hadn’t been thinking about it much the past three days due to _other_ thoughts crowding his mind. But Spy was going to recover, thank goodness, so talking was going to happen. Scout had to thank him for saving his life, obviously but what was their talk about their relation to each other going to be like? What could Scout even say about finding out one of his teammates was also his long-lost dad? What _should_ he say? He’d figure it out… somehow and fast.

 

The butterfly knife clicked and clacked as Scout messed with it, trying to imitate some of the fancy tricks he’d seen Spy perform with it. It wasn’t going well in large part due to the fact the he had to use his non-dominate hand. So far he’d cut himself with it at least five times, all shallow flesh wounds but they stung like a bitch. No one was around to see though and Spy was still unconscious on the bed, so he kept trying.

It was smaller than any of the melee weapons Scout had used in the past, making it feel even more unfamiliar in his hand. He’d have to leave soon, before any of the others came to visit again – which they all did every so often – or Medic came in to do his doctor stuff. Them coming in and seeing him here made Scout feel awkward, Spy was going to live so there was no more need for Scout to be so vigilant.

Spy was his father yes, but had abandoned him and his Mom before Scout was even old enough to remember him. And he hadn’t said _anything_ when they’d joined up under the same mercenary company. _And_ they’d had more than a few hostile encounters with each other. So they weren’t close. But Spy had almost _died_ saving him, had probably gone in thinking he would but had anyway, so… where did they stand with each other now?

And now that they both knew and openly acknowledged their relationship would Spy start treating Scout like his son? Did Scout _want_ him to? Or would Spy leave like he had the first time because he didn’t want to be a dad? That had to be why he left, right? And why he hadn’t told Scout when they’d started working together. Oh gosh, did Scout just reunite with his dad for reals _just_ for him to leave again?

All his childhood daydreams about meeting his dad one day and connecting with him and having a good time suddenly seemed more childish than they had before. But hey, his day dreams about his dad being alive and a secret agent turned out to be sort of true, that was nice, sort of.

“It’s not a toy.”

Scout jumped, even letting out a small squeak of surprise. The knife cut his hand again before falling to the floor with a clatter. He looked up to see that Spy’s eyes had opened and were trained on him.

Scout forced a grin as he bent over to pick up the knife off the floor, discreetly wiping his blood off its blade. There wasn’t much he could do about the latest cut on his hand though, it was deeper than the rest and a small trickle of blood oozed out of it, his hand wraps would easily cover them though. “You’re awake,” he said as he placed the knife back on the bedside table.

Spy’s eyes shifted around the room before settling on Scout again. “Yes, I did not expect that.” His voice was softer and weaker than it normally was. It was strange to hear. “Nor would I have expected to find you here when I woke up.”

“Well uh… you did save my life and stuff.” Scout had rehearsed what he was going to say in the mirror but even if he could remember what it was now it no longer seemed adequate. “Thanks for that I… appreciate it. How’d you show up when you did though? I know my initial call for help didn’t make to the base.”

“I bugged your headset and it got through to me.”

“Oh uh… what?” Scout shot up. “That’s… I’d be mad if you hadn’t saved my life because of it.” He settled back down.

“I was far away so I almost didn’t make it. If it were otherwise I would’ve taken out your attackers without putting myself in danger.” And probably not revealing himself either.

“So like did you bug my headset to uh… watch out for me or whatever?” Did Spy still remember that Scout knew about his secret?

Spy hesitated, studying Scout in a way that made him feel almost uncomfortable. “I suppose you could say that. I bugged all other lines of communication too though.”

Scout opened his mouth to call him an asshole but stopped himself. Being extremely grateful towards someone for saving his life wasn’t a feeling he was used to, knowing the person who’d done it was also his long-lost father added another layer of complexity to it that he had no idea how to handle. “So uh… Dad,” oh wow, it felt weird to call him that to his face after how long they’d worked together, “why didn’t you tell me when we both joined up here?”

Spy almost seemed to flinch a little, it was probably just Scout’s imagination though. “I uh… didn’t think you’d take it well.”

He was probably correct but Scout still had a right to know, right? After what had happened though, Scout couldn’t feel mad about it ~~and getting angry might drive Spy towards leaving even more.~~ “But that means I’m half French, right?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think Pauling likes French guys?”

Spy groaned. “Are you kidding me? _That_ is what you’re thinking about right now?”

“Uh yeah? What else would I be thinking about?” Other than everything having do with Spy being his dad and not wanting to think about it any of it, let alone discuss it right now. Even if Spy _did_ want to leave he couldn’t do so yet because of his injuries so Scout had time to figure stuff out so he was going to procrastinate on it.

“I don’t know, something _important_.”

“This _is_ important.” It was and it doubled as a good distraction, so yes, this was what Scout was going to think about right now. “Do you think if you taught me to speak French she’d want to go out with me?”

“I don’t know. What makes you think I’d bother to teach you French anyway?”

“You’re my dad, so you gotta teach me stuff, right? It’s not like you were there to do it when I was a kid.” When Scout had _needed_ him. But did Scout _really_ want him acting as his father now after all this time? … Maybe, better late than never, right? Assuming that phrase could even apply to family bonds. It probably couldn’t, if Spy wanted to act as his dad, he wouldn’t have left _or_ he would’ve at least started doing so when they’d ended up in the same mercenary squad.

Scout hid all his doubt and fear with a grin and nonchalant attitude, he was taking after his father on the deceptive side of things. “And you’re injured so it’s not like you’ll be going on a mission anytime soon so you might as well do _something_ useful with your time, like teaching your son useful life skills such as how to speak French so I can have a better chance with the lady of my dreams.”

Spy rolled his eyes. He seemed… tense though, was that pain, nervousness, or both? Was he planning on bailing as soon as he was able to? “Maybe later.” Despite his obvious attempt to hide it, his tone made it clear he was exhausted.

“All right, I’ll let you rest then.” Scout stood and headed for the door. “We can do more father son bonding stuff later,” he said with a grin before heading through the door and closing it behind him before Spy could reply.

He let out a heavy breath as he leaned against the wall by the door. That hadn’t gone how he’d hoped it would. He hadn’t been planning on saying much about their relationship beyond just confirming it again, it had just sort of happened. Spy hadn’t disowned him though, right? Not openly to his face at least and he _had_ almost died to save him so that meant he at least cared enough to not want Scout dead. That didn’t mean he’d stay though, did it? Not that Scout would care if he left again, why would he? He’d lived his whole life without his dad, he could continue to do so but… he didn’t want to. … He might have to though.


	4. Awake

Upon finding out he was awake – apparently, he’d been out for a while, no surprise there given the extent of his injuries – everyone in the team came to Spy’s room for a visit. It was annoying and awkward but maybe a little heartwarming too, not that Spy would _ever_ admit it.

Another thing he wasn’t going to admit was how _glad_ he was to be alive. When he’d shown up on the scene and seen Scout’s situation and that there was no possible way to take them all out before they had a chance to kill Scout, he’d done the only thing he could without giving it a second thought despite knowing his chances of surviving it were less than good.

Honestly, he was a bit surprised with himself, he wouldn’t have thought himself capable of jumping straight to sacrificing himself without thinking first about it for a couple seconds at least, not even for Scout. But he had and… he’d do so again if he had to. Hopefully there would be no next time though.

He let out a sigh of relief once his last visitors – Pyro and Engi – had left, leaving only him and Medic. He was exhausted but in too much pain to go back to sleep. Medic was good enough at his job that he didn’t need to say anything about that to administer him another dose of pain meds, he didn’t want to depend on them but right now he had no choice if he wanted to think clearly or get any rest. Which his body desperately needed.

“Where’s Scout?” he asked before Medic could leave. It was late afternoon now, nearing nightfall, and despite the conversation they’d had that morning after Spy had woken up, Scout hadn’t come back.

“I do not know. I’m surprised he’s not here actually. He sat by your bedside often while you were unconscious, especially before we knew you were going to live. I had to get Heavy to carry him back to bed after he fell asleep here at night. I can go find him if you like.”

“No, don’t bother, he’ll show up eventually.” Spy dismissed Medic with a wave, feigning an uncaring attitude.

The slight smirk on Medic’s face said he knew just how out of place he’d just made Spy feel, probably why he’d gone out of his way to tell him about Scout’s actions during the days Spy had spent unconscious. He _never_ would’ve thought Scout would do something like that regardless of who’d been hurt or the circumstances behind it. But apparently, he had, and he’d done so for Spy.

“Guten Nacht then,” Medic said with a wave before turning around leaving.

Spy let out a half sigh, half groan once the door was closed. His chest hurt like _hell_ , every breath was like getting stabbed or shot all over again, and he’d had to pretend like it was nothing while dealing with everyone. Hopefully the pain meds would kick in soon and hopefully Scout would take his time before returning. Spy wasn’t in the mood to figure out what he was going to do about him now, especially if he continued to insist on Spy acting out his role as his father.

How had Scout even found out? The others who knew had all found out because they were smart – Medic because of the DNA tests he’d performed on them when they’d joined up. Maybe Scout was smarter than Spy had thought, he was certainly good at hiding it if so.

***

Despite constantly being drunk, Demoman still managed to beat Scout at cards for the third time in a row. Which left Scout with nothing left to gamble with to try to get his money back. Perfect.

“It’s only ‘cause my arm’s still hurt and stuff, it’s distracting me and making the cards harder to hold” he said, handing over the last bit of cash he had until his next paycheck. He’d blown through this one faster than normal somehow. “I got shot remember?”

“Yup.” Demoman took Scout’s money and pocketed it with a toothy grin, no doubt that’d be going to more booze later. “Speaking of that, you should go pay your daddy a visit, you haven’t been up to see him since he woke up yesterday, right?”

“All right, first off, you know too? Second, never refer to him as my… ‘daddy’ _ever_ again. That’s weird and creepy.”

“Yeah, everybody knows, even you figured it out eventually.” He chuckled and took a swig from his bottle. “And ain’t nothing wrong with calling him your daddy when he is.”

“Ugh, I’m done with this shit.” Scout stood up, slamming his hands on the table in front of him. It would’ve looked tough if he didn’t wince right after, the damn bullet wound in his arm still hurt like hell. He shook it off though and walked out.

He wasn’t planning on it but his feet took him in the direction of the medical area and once there he might as well go ahead and visit Spy again. Maybe he’d be asleep, giving Scout the perfect excuse to leave.

Maybe he should peek in, try to be sneaky in case he woke up Spy on accident. … Nah. He opened the door and barged in as he would any other room.

Sniper sat in the bedside chair. He like Spy looked up at Scout as he entered. “Welp,” he said as he stood. “I guess that’s my cue to leave. See ya later mate.”

Scout stepped aside, letting him pass before closing the door. “Hey pal or Dad or whatever I’m supposed to call you now,” he said as nonchalantly as he could. He needed to pretend like nothing had changed now that their familial relationship was a known and open thing between them. Back when Scout had just strongly suspected and had been lying to himself about the truth it had been much easier to continue on like before. But now it wasn’t a secret anymore and Spy had gotten _very_ close to sacrificing his life to save Scout’s, so things weren’t normal anymore.

Spy raised an eyebrow as he took a drag on his cigarette – Sniper no doubt had given it him against Medic’s orders. Was he just as unsure about all this as Scout was and he was just good at hiding it or was he truthfully in complete control? It was impossible to say, especially with the mask on. “You still want to learn French?”

“Uh… yeah.” Being bilingual would impress Pauling for sure and French was supposed to be the language of love, right? Making it the perfect language to learn. And not having to talk about the other important things between them right now was awesome.

So, he plopped himself in the bedside chair. “So you’re gonna teach me?”

“I suppose so, I have nothing to do while I recover so I might as well.”

“Cool but uh… you sure you should be smoking right now?”

Spy scowled. “No, but I’m going to anyway. I won’t teach you anything if you tell Medic.”

Scout wanted to argue further but now wasn’t the time for it, he’d talk to Sniper about it later. “All right, no tattling, got it. Let’s start though.”

***

“This is hard, can’t you just teach me to speak it?” Scout complained, rolling his head up with a groan.

“She’ll be more impressed if you can write it too.” If Spy was going to teach him French he was going to do it properly no matter how much he whined and complained.

“You really think so?”

“I know so.” Spy didn’t know that for sure, but saying so would be the only way to get Scout to listen.

Scout gave him a skeptical looking before sighing and looking down at the notebook again. Good. Teaching him was a nice distraction from the pain and boredom, even if it did get annoying and exhausting sometimes.

It was made even more difficult by Scout’s dyslexia. Spy had it too though – Scout had _gotten_ it from him – and thus he knew how handle it and could teach Scout how to as well. Despite his complaining Scout did _really_ try, making steady progress even if it was at a snail’s pace. Spy was proud of him.

How different would things have been if Spy hadn’t left? How different would Scout have turned out? Would he have still ended up working as a mercenary? Would he be better behaved or just as rowdy and immature? It was impossible to know and thus it wasn’t worth thinking about.

The real question was: when was Scout going to go back to being angry Spy hadn’t been there when he was a kid? He’d used to get angry each and every time someone brought up his father, come to think of it when he _stopped_ being like that had to be when he’d begun to suspect the truth.

If he’d had that strong suspicion confirmed any other way he undoubtedly would’ve been pissed about it. They’d been working together in the same mercenary company and squad for a while now after all and Spy had never said anything about it – initially he’d planned to but had kept putting it off until it had gone beyond the point of awkwardness and thus he’d decided to never say anything to him about it even when the other members of their squad – minus Soldier – had all found out through various means. The fallout of all that secret keeping and anger about Spy having left had to hit eventually.

When though? And how was Spy going to handle it? … He’d figure that out when they got there. For now, Spy would just enjoy the distraction Scout offered in his endeavors to learn French.

Now if only Scout _hadn’t_ convinced Sniper to stop sharing cigarettes with Spy. Though… he was probably right to do so, that didn’t mean Spy had to like it though.


	5. Talk

The more Spy recovered from his injuries the more Scout began to wonder when he was going to leave. It wasn’t guaranteed that he would, but he might. Scout wouldn’t care if he did though, he was just hanging out with him so much to learn French so he would be more appealing to Pauling, not because he wanted to spend time with his dad or convince him to say or anything. Why would he want to do that?

He was grateful towards him for saving his life and all but that’s it. He’d still left when Scout was too young to remember him and he hadn’t said anything to him when they’d started working together. So there was no reason for them to be close, Scout didn’t need nor want to be anyway. And they’d been at odds before, now that Spy had saved him it was different, but that was the only reason why. Scout had known before then anyway, even if he’d lied to himself about it.

Scout wasn’t a child, he didn’t need anybody. But… no matter how many times he told himself that the thought of Spy leaving him again made him feel… not good. The kind of not good that came with a punch to the gut. He hated it and _hated_ how much that ‘not good’ feeling would increase if Spy when recovered he left again, a _very_ real possibility even if he was being his version of nice while teaching Scout stuff.

It was when Medic declared Spy fit enough to be allowed to go back to his room that Scout decided to brave up, go to Spy’s quarters after he’d settled in again and ask the question. “So uh… you going to leave soon or what?” he asked, leaning back against the wall as he flicked one of Spy spare knives around – he’d gotten it from Spy’s desk next to him, there were several, all different in some way, who needed that many knives?

Focused on the knife, Scout didn’t look at Spy but could almost feel his disapproving glare. He always gave Scout that look whenever Scout messed with his things. It was his own fault for leaving them out where they could be seen and within easy reach.

“’Leave’? Why would I leave? And that’s not a toy, put it back.”

Scout groaned and rolled his eyes but obeyed, the last thing he wanted was to have this conversation while Spy was annoyed with him. “You’re recovering and stuff now, so if you wanted to leave you could.” He pulled a pen out his pocket to play with instead, being careful not to click it, just spinning it around.

“Yes, but why would I want to?” Oh dear, he was still annoyed despite Scout having put the knife back. Was it in the wrong spot or something? Gosh, there was no pleasing him.

“You know,” Scout shrugged, spinning the pen around in his hand, tricks he’d mastered while in school, “because I know you’re my dad and stuff. You didn’t want me knowing, right? Or you would’ve said something. And like… you left Mom because of me, right? So now that I know and you know I know are you… going to leave again?” It was a lot harder to say than it had any right to be. Scout didn’t care, why would he care? He was too cool to care about something like that, he’d lived his whole life not even knowing if his dad was alive or not so he didn’t need him.

There was a long silence, filled only by the flicking of the pen in Scout’s hand, before Spy’s hand came seemingly out of nowhere and snatched it away from him. Taken by surprise over how close he’d gotten without making a sound, Scout looked at him properly for the first time since entering the room to have this conversation.

He didn’t look annoyed anymore, though with the mask on it was hard to tell for sure, especially with how tricky he was. Holding Scout’s gaze, he pocketed the pen. “Do you want me to leave?”

“No.” Scout _should’ve_ said he didn’t care but the way Spy’s eyes bore into him made him uncomfortable enough that the truth had slipped out before he could think about it.

“Then I won’t.” He said it with such certainty that Scout believed him. And even if he didn’t want to admit it, even to himself, he couldn’t deny that that made him feel better.

“Thanks,” he whispered as Spy stepped back, letting Scout’s gaze drift away from his. “But uh… if you’re not going to leave does that mean… you’re like… cool with me and stuff?” Oh, he shouldn’t have asked that, Spy not wanting to leave didn’t mean he was ‘cool’ with Scout being his son. With how prim and proper he was and how Scout was the opposite in almost every regard he was had to be disappointed, right?

“Assuming by ‘cool’ you mean ‘I care about you’ then… yes, I do. But what is it you want from me?”

“Uh… what do you mean?” This was the most awkward conversation Scout had ever had. But… Spy had admitted to caring about him, that was… a great feeling.

“I mean, now that you know I’m your biological father do you want me to act as such or do you want to go back to how we were before? I know I… left when I probably shouldn’t have, it was a complicated situation though and it can’t be changed now. So what do you want from me?”

The question Scout had been asking himself since Spy had almost died saving him was finally being asked to his face. Based off how long and hard he’d been considering it, it should’ve been a hard question to answer but… He looked up again to meet Spy’s eyes, they were calm but his stiff posture indicated an underlying nervousness. “I uh… you’re my dad so… that’s what I want you to be.”

Spy let out a sigh, some of the tension melting from his body. “I would… like that. Sorry I wasn’t there when you needed me.”

Scout relaxed a little too, they were on the same page. “That’s in the past and like… you were there to save my life from those assholes, I _definitely_ needed you then. I’m… _so_ glad you survived that. But uh… you’re here now and… does this mean I can call you ‘Dad’?”

“Yes, if you like, you can call me ‘Dad’.”

“Thanks.” Scout stepped forward and hugged him, remembering just in time to be gentle so as not to upset his injuries. He was stiff and unprepared. Scout didn’t give him much time to react though, holding him for only a few a seconds before letting go. He then turned and fled towards the door with embarrassment and awkwardness. “Lovely talk… Dad, gotta go do stuff now, see you later,” he said before closing the door behind him.

Thankfully the hallway was clear and thus he was able to safely make it to his room with no one seeing him. He’d hide out in here until he got control of his emotions again and then would pretend like nothing weird had happened.

***

Spy stood frozen in place for almost a whole minute before he felt able to move again. The abrupt hug followed by Scout’s abrupt departure threw him off a lot. He’d be back soon though and would undoubtedly try to act like everything was normal except he’d be calling Spy ‘Dad’ now. Which was… nice.

Spy had somehow managed to repair his relationship with his son despite almost everything going against them on that front. They’d probably still clash occasionally, their personalities were too different for such to not be the case, but this proved they could always recover.

He hadn’t been that good of a father before but now he had a second chance – perhaps it was a third one though, since his second chance had probably come when Scout had coincidentally ended up working in not only the same mercenary army as him but also the same squad and he’d blown that. Regardless of that though, he’d do his best now, better late than never after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there's the end. I was originally planning on doing an alternate ending where Spy didn't survive but that's too sad for me (I was considering making it a joke where Deadringered and thus Scout thought he was dead so Spy got to see his reaction to that, I still might do that one later because I feel like it could be kinda funny.)
> 
> If you liked it please leave a comment, I crave feedback, (what creator doesn't?). This is my first TF2 fic, I hope and intend to do more in the future. :)


End file.
